eSwatini prince loves Taiwan, wants to keep studying here

2018/06/09 15:32:38

Taipei, June 9 (CNA) In fluent mandarin, the prince of Taiwan's African ally, Kingdom of eSwatini, on Saturday expressed his deep affection toward the country where he has studied for the past four years.

Speaking in both Chinese and English, Prince Buhlebenkhosi Dlamini thanked Shih Chien University on behalf of all international graduates.

"To the government and the people of the great country, thank you so much for being hospitable and providing us such a warm environment during the course of our studies," he said.

After college graduation, the prince said, he will continue to study in Taiwan for his master degree due to his love for the country.

eSwatini is Taiwan's last diplomatic ally in Africa, after it lost Burkina Faso to China in May.

Prince Buhlebenkhosi, who completed an undergraduate degree in international business and trade at Shih Chien University, was giving a speech on behalf of the foreign student graduates of the Class of 2018.

According to the university, aside from attending English-taught courses, Buhlebenkhosi also learned Mandarin in the school's Mandarin Learning Center as well as participated in all kinds of extracurricular activities, including filming a short film to introduce his life in Taiwan to the world and writing a book about his home country eSwatini, formerly known as Swaziland.

He will pursue his master degree at the university while doing an internship in a local bank, the school said.

A classmate of the prince surnamed Cheng (鄭) told local media that Buhlebenkhosi is widely popular among his class as he is very easy to get along with even though he is a prince of an African kingdom.

He loves to play basketball and listen to music, both songs in his native eSwatini language and hip-hop.

The prince also enjoys mountain climbing. He has previously invited his whole class to visit his home country one day, according to Cheng.

Saturday's graduation ceremony was joined by the prince's father King Mswati III, who is leading a delegation to the country for a state visit.

The king was bestowed with an honorary doctorate in management by the university in recognition of his "remarkable leadership of his country as well as his friendship with Republic of China (Taiwan)."

According to the university's president Michael Chen (陳振貴), one of Buhlebenkhosi's younger brothers will study in his school soon.